Trail Ridge Road, the highest continuous paved road in the U.S., travels through the heart of Rocky Mountain National Park from Estes Park to Grand Lake. It is open from Memorial Day until heavy snowfalls make the route impractical to keep clear, usually sometime from late-September to Thanksgiving.

The route, with 11 miles of pavement above treeline, climbs from about 7,800 feet at Park Headquarters to more than 12,000 feet at the summit. On this trip, travelers can view alpine tundra which makes up a full third of the park.

At this altitude you’ll find a fragile environment of aged but dwarfed plants and animals that have adapted to the high elevation. No other arctic-like world exists that is as accessible. Four to six hours should be allowed for the trip